Filled With Joy

Read Acts 2:25-28

We prepared. We waited eagerly for His coming. And last week we celebrated His quiet incursion into our time and space. Now again, we anticipate a different kind of celebration: the beginning of a new year.

In today’s passage, Peter addresses the crowds on Pentecost. In his explanation of the events surrounding the outpouring of the Holy Spirit he recalls David’s prophecy about the Messiah’s resurrection (Psalm 16). David’s joy and security was rooted in his confidence that the Lord is and will remain with us, not abandoning us – ever, because even death cannot overcome Him. Standing on the other side of the cross, Peter’s passion and drive was rooted in the same.

Whether we are inclined to face the coming year with apprehension or excitement, fear or enthusiasm, let us always remember this tremendous work of love and redemption that God has done for us, and let it change us.

Let our hearts be joyful; let our spirits be unshaken. Let our praises be heard; let our minds be at peace. Let us walk in His ways and let us be present in His presence.

QUESTIONS:

1. Pentecost coincided with Shavout, the Jewish Feast of Weeks. What do you know about Shavout and how does it enrich the context of the passage?

2. What was the response of Peter’s audience to his message? What is our response? Who do you know that hasn’t heard?

PRAYER:

Father, you made Jesus, this newborn Babe, whom we crucified, Lord and Messiah. Let this fact cut us to the heart and move us. Amen.

Jon Gerckens

Wind Instruments

Phil Nagy is a musician’s musician. I’ve heard him play any number of stringed instruments, carry the beat on drums, and sing some pretty difficult tunes. He can also pick up the flute, oboe, clarinet, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, baritone, and tuba! Did I mention Phil includes “band director” in his repertoire?

Every horn Phil picks up produces its own sound, different from all the others. The trumpet excites with confident blasts of high-pitched energy, the flute softening their sharp edges with soothing sensibility, and from the oboe wends an alluring enchantment one can neither mimic nor ignore. Each brass brings its own purpose, and every woodwind leaves its own effect. Yet all of his instruments share this in common: none is capable of producing even the first note by itself; it is Phil’s exhale into each horn that frees it from its silence and releases from it the great purpose for which it was crafted. And at this one man’s breath, every implement shows itself distinct.

There was a time when I favored conformity, preferring people who dressed a certain way, spoke a certain way, and lived a certain way. I surrounded myself with a circle of sameness, be it a fraternity of French horns or a clique of clarinets. Over time, however, I’ve come to savor the unique among us—the lonely bassoon with his melancholy contemplations, the piccolo who flitters in unannounced, alights in sanguine cheer, then departs as quickly as she came, and the tuba, who goes about his duties in a workmanlike manner, largely unnoticed despite his conspicuous size. For the Director has selected each in its own beauty and united them all for His composition.

In preparation for this Pentecost Sunday, take some time to sense and to savor the body of Christ, for the Holy Spirit calls and gifts each believer for the common good, just as He determines. Enjoy those who carry the tune, of course, but listen also for the softer sounds of those who serve in the background, those who, under the mastery of the Maestro, turn a mere melody into a magnificent masterpiece.

Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. Romans 6:13.

Acts 19:1-7

In the name of the Father 
and of the Son 
and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

We have a vision of who the Father and Son are, but the Holy Spirit seems more mysterious. 

It’s difficult to picture what a Holy Spirit looks like and because of our human limitations

 we seem to need things somewhat concrete to understand.

In Acts 2, the Pentecost took place. Luke writes of a violent blowing wind that came from 
             heaven. What appeared to be tongues of fire rested upon each of their heads and they began              to speak in tongues as the Spirit enabled them. As a crowd gathered these disciples’ words 

were clearly understood by each one in their own native language.

Acts 19 tells of another incident of disciples receiving the Holy Spirit. Perhaps we are those 

disciples. Before Jesus was taken up into heaven he promised the power of the Holy Spirit 

would come. That promise was not just for the twelve chosen Apostles, but for all men.

The Holy Spirit is the power of God here on earth. We are all free to receive it, but we must 

be still and open our hearts to feel and accept it. It need not happen in a great and glorious 

manner with wind and fire. It is a personal experience meant to help us feel and 

understand God’s purpose and our mission.

Might speaking in tongues to us be simply meeting people where they are, identifying

 with their pain, and walking them through it toward the Lord?

We have been given this gift of the Holy Spirit, but it does us no good to simply look 

at the beautifully wrapped package. We must open it, acknowledge its contents,

 thank our God, and use it for His purpose.
"Bringing Faith To Life"

Read/Listen to Acts 19:1-7

Acts 2

"They were all together in one place." (Acts 2:1)

This is a powerful verse to me.  Do you get any mental pictures after reading this?  I see lots of things, most of them make me smile and provide fond memories.  First I see my church family standing side-by side singing along with the Praise Team at a Worship Service.  Then I vision a family reunion many years ago and a special moment where my husband, his mother, sister and five brothers were perfectly preserved for all time in one of those photos that just happened.

There are other scenes this scripture captures for me as well, like the morning of my first mission trip while the team was waiting for the last member to arrive and it was getting dangerously close to departure and finally, "They were all together in one place." My mind's eye is looking at other pictures too: the sanctuary on the eve of my husband's memorial service, the yearly family Christmas photo, Thursday nights when my small group regularly met and so many more.

What do you see? More important, what do you feel about this fellowship thing, this one-anothering concept? I have so many images in my mind right now and most of them cause a fond memory to stir.   Why not take a moment to listen to Acts 2 then examine your thoughts about the words you hear.  When the disciples and all followers of that day think back, they probably remembered that they were all together in one place when this miraculous moment took place and the Holy Spirit filled them.

Read Acts 2 here

Listen to Acts 2 here

Did You Hear What I Said? Acts 2:1-13

We have been reading from the book of Acts this week, discovering how the church started. We first looked at Jesus final instructions to the apostles to wait in Jerusalem until the Father sends the Holy Spirit, which will be their way to reach the lost.

In today’s passage the Holy Spirit makes his dramatic entry. I have been in several church services on Pentecost Sunday where the church attempts to duplicate this amazing event. I have seen a church line a few dozen people across the front of the church, with each person reading a verse from Acts 2. The fun part for the congregation is listening as each reader speaks in a different language.

I have also seen a church have people stand up sporadically within the congregations and, in unison, read from Acts 2 each also speaking in a different language. While both of the demonstrations are fun to watch and powerful to imagine how the Holy Spirit affected the apostles, they are both incorrect examples.

You see, when the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles that day and they started to speak, the hearer did not hear different languages, they heard their own language. That is the miracle! The disciples were not speaking different languages, but the crowd, filled with people of different tongues all heard the message that was being spoken. There was no confusion.

What I love about this event is how it is impossible for us to give an accurate reenactment without the aid of the Holy Spirit. God is huge. He is powerful. And only He can communicate the message of the gospel, tearing down all communication barriers. Praise God.

Read today's passage at Biblegateway Acts 2:1-13